Ms Rachel Abreu

Rachel Abreu is a PhD Researcher in the Department of Communications, Media, and Culture. Rachel's doctoral research centres on the role of religious identity in ethnic minority women's conceptualisations of beauty on Instagram. She is supervised by Dr Greg Singh, Dr Susan Berridge, and Dr Victoria Esteves.

Rachel's research is guided by a feminist framework and seeks to highlight the voices of marginalised groups. Her key research interests are:

• The persisting effects of colonialism on identity formation and self-perception
• The intersections between gender, race, and religion
• The role of social media in articulations of beauty and gender

Rachel holds an MA(Hons) in English Literature from The University of St Andrews. She also completed her MSc in Media Management at the University of Stirling. Her Master's Dissertation, 'The Relationship Between Instagram and the Perceptions of Beauty of Young Women from Ethnic Minorities', received the Dee Amy Chinn Prize (2019-20) for its contribution to gender research in the Faculty of Arts and Humanities.

Rachel has previously worked as a journalist in both the Philippines and the UK. Her experience includes both lifestyle and news journalism for print, TV, and radio outlets.

Rachel's research interests include (but are not limited to) the themes of:

Social Media, Participatory Cultures, Visual Media, Feminism, Religion, Race and Ethnicity, Colonialism, Representation, Intersectionality, Body Image, Self Image.